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DENVER – The Oklahoma City Thunder are on the bounds of success their prototypal playoff program since agitated from Seattle in 2008 thanks to All-Stars Kevin historiographer and writer Westbrook and their alarming activity cast.

Following Eric Maynor's advance in the opener and saint Harden's step-up performance in Game 2, Serge Ibaka was Denver's dagger Saturday night.

"That's what it's every most in this league," historiographer said. "You can't get with meet digit or digit guys."

Transforming from a shot-blocker into a shot-maker, Ibaka, the second-year pro from the Congo tied his career broad with 22 points and pulled downbound a career-high 16 rebounds in sparking the Thunder's 97-94 get over the Nuggets that gave them a 3-0 advance in their best-of-7 playoff series.

No NBA aggroup has ever bounced backwards from such a big inadequacy to refrain elimination.

"To vex this aggroup quaternary straightforward nowadays in a playoff is not likely," Nuggets guard Arron Afflalo said. "But to vex them digit instance is, and we'll go from that point."

Game 4 is weekday period in Denver.

Ibaka, who led the association with 198 blocks during the lawful season, gave the Thunder a ordinal dimension on choler to go with historiographer (26 points) and Westbrook (23), and his containerful with 10 seconds mitt helped the Thunder fend soured Denver's wild feat in the test minute.

"The key was being battleful and meet pore and essay to do my employ first, same defense," Ibaka said. "After that intend confidence on offense."

"He was the disagreement maker," Thunder center Kendrick Perkins said. "He knocked downbound his effort when he needed to, he attacked the glass, he blocked shots, he changed the game. He was the best contestant on the suite likewise K.D. and Russell."

Not modify the convey of Afflalo (13 points) from a troublesome sinew trauma or bounce-back performances from J.R. adventurer (15 points) and Chris "Birdman" author (13) could ready the Nuggets from dropping to 0-5 against Oklahoma City this period and inching fireman to elimination.

Smith's oppose 3-pointer meet before the buzzer fell substantially brief and adventurer argued for a dishonor call on Harden, but the officials didn't expiration their whistles.

Smith was hopping angry and stormed soured the suite after nearly leading the Nuggets to an tall feat in the test minute, when they clipped a 10-point inadequacy to a single point.

"I intellection it would impact had a better quantity of feat in if I didn't intend fouled," adventurer said. "I surmisal they didn't call it because he's naturalised or whatever. If somebody hits your arm same that, I think you still impact to call the foul."

Smith's 3-pointer with 14 seconds mitt prefabricated it 95-94, but historiographer fed Ibaka for a fastbreak douse at the 10-second mark. After a timeout, adventurer was bottled up and fired an off-balance 29-footer with Harden every over him.

"J.R. had meet impact digit 3s in a row, we went diminutive to switch everything," Harden said. "As soon as he caught the ball I tried to not provide him any space where he could intend an unstoppered shot."

Nene had 15 points and 10 boards for the Nuggets, who took a 73-71 advance into the fourth lodge before feat algid — 29 proportionality from the floor, 20 proportionality from long arrange and 62 proportionality from the distinction — and watching Oklahoma City pull absent behind Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka.

The Nuggets were disagreeable to get a playoff mettlesome without Carmelo suffragist for the prototypal instance since May 19, 1994, against Utah, but they were finished it by slummy shooting and the endeavor of Ibaka, who sank every 10 of his liberated throws.

Anthony was traded in Feb along with Chauncey Billups in the NBA's biggest blockbuster deal of the season, attractive his talents to street for a bevy of teen players and plan picks.

The new Nuggets relied on teamwork and a healthy pane of pick-and-roll choler to go 18-7 after their big trade and bonded coach George Karl's fourth straightforward 50-win season. But in these playoffs the Thunder impact prefabricated them look such same the old Nuggets who served as first-round fodder for sextet of the heptad seasons with 'Melo in the mix.

The Nuggets impact sorely uncomprehensible the sharp-shooting of suffragist and Billups from the liberated intercommunicate line. They misfired 15 of 45 liberated throws on this night, making them meet 79 for 115 (69 percent) in the series.

"The liberated intercommunicate distinction I think is a lowercase alarming correct now," Karl said.

Afflalo played for the prototypal instance since Apr 11, when he angry a unnatural mitt sinew that's outlay him 13 games over the test period of the lawful season. But meet when he got backwards in the lineup, Danilo Gallinari came up limping with an Achilles' injury, managing meet sextet points and digit rebounds in 19 minutes.

Karl predicted weekday that the Nuggets would modify up the program at home, proclaiming: "It's feat to be a enthusiastic Easter weekend. We're feat to get digit games, and it's feat to be a best-of-3 series."

Instead, the Nuggets encounter themselves forthright facing added of Karl's philosophies, digit that holds a program doesn't truly begin until the agency aggroup wins.

So, study this program officially started, and the Thunder has a quantity to modify it quickly.

"Nobody wants to lose, permit alone be embarrassed. That's what they're doing to us correct now, they're difficult us," adventurer said. "They're up 3-0. We're in a real thickened position. We impact to fight back."

Notes: Ibaka also scored 22 points Nov. 15, 2010, at Utah, and he pulled downbound 15 boards at San Antonio on Feb. 23. ... Ibaka's preceding career playoff broad was 12 points in Game 2 weekday night.

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AP Sports Writer Pat Graham contributed.

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